


Cold Hearted Beast

by Chippani



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: A wild Percy appears!, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Beauty and the Beast Elements, M/M, Unfortunately he attacks Will the moment he sees him, it does not go well
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:01:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22126012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chippani/pseuds/Chippani
Summary: A spell to block out the sunA nobleman's child cursed for his father's mistakesAnd a boy doomed to die.Will asked his friends to help him out of the city, but they never expected to be trapped in the dark castle by a storm. Nor did they cosider that they wouldn't be alone.
Relationships: Cecil Markowitz & Will Solace, Lou Ellen Blackstone & Cecil Markowitz, Lou Ellen Blackstone & Will Solace, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Comments: 8
Kudos: 25





	1. A Castle of Ghosts, a Kingdom in Shadows

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so weird au incoming.
> 
> I don't know if I should explain a bit but I will.  
> Nico is a prince, and he kind of takes the place of the beast, except not really.  
> Will is still the son of Apollo, yes, and I considered making Apollo a king, but this works better. So, a nobel.  
> Lou Ellen is a sorceress in training, but only Will and Cecil know that.  
> Cecil is her go-to test subject.
> 
> I don't know if that helps but there you go.

Will wasn't sure how long Lou Ellen took to answer the tapping on her window. It felt like hours and he had to hurry before the sun rose. Cecil had tried so hard to calm his nerves, but it was no use.

If he stayed in the city he would die.

No one would care that he was cursed. They'd see a monster and attack without warning. He'd seen it happen when a Harpy had found her way into the square the day before. Prince Jason himself had slaughtered it and taken the feathers. It terrified him, especially with his current _condition_. If Lou Ellen were better with her magic, he would have thought she could help him within the hour and not feel the need to flee. But, as it was, she'd turned Cecil into a pig for a week on accident, and he still had side effects. Namely, the small curly tail he kept tucked into his pants at all times.

Finally, she poked her head out. "Cecil? What the-" her words cut off as she noticed their friend. " _William?!_ Oh gods, what happened to you?!"

She turned back inside, presumably to slip on some boots and hopped out of the window. Her dark eyes were wide with concern as she looked at him. He swallowed nervously and glanced at Cecil. "Wait- you can tell it's him?" He hissed quietly. "I thought some monster had broken into the rats den!"

"I can see him... Sort of. Gods- let me get my stuff. Meet me at the tree house." She shooed them off and started to climb back in the window.

Cecil didn't hesitate to grab his arm and drag him towards the woods. Will let out a silent prayer that none of the guards would see them slip into the tree line.

* * *

He didn't recognize the face that stared back at him. It was vaguely human in shape but...

Light brown fur was covering every inch of his skin. Lynx ears poked through a mop of golden hair that resembled a mane more than anything else. His eyes were cat-like, his pupils thin slits in a sea of blue. Claws were at the end of his fingers rather than the short, bitten nails he was so used to. Shoes were out of the equation considering the paws in place of his feet. He couldn't even begin to think about the tail. Or what had happened to his nose.

Lou Ellen approached him cautiously. "So, you wanna tell us what happened?" He glanced at her, his ears dropping.

"My dad, he... Olympus above, he's an idiot..." Cecil snorted. "He told Circe that no one could ever love someone like her. I don't know if he was insulting her appearance or personality, but she didn't take it well."

The young mage bit her lip as she studied him more closely. "I could find a solution, but that could take months, and... We can't just keep you here!" She gestured vaguely around the tree house. Part of the roof was leaking, and all of the furniture was in poor condition. Plus, there was no kitchen, or running water like in the city. Then there were Lou Ellen's books and alchemy supplies. She probably would have kept all of it at her home if the king hadn't banned her branch of magic three years ago.

She must have envied how Circe had managed to cast her spells without getting caught. Then again, she probably hated the woman even more considering all she ever did was use her magic against men. And in more permanent ways.

"We could try to sneak him into Neptunia." Cecil chimed in. "I mean, they have cyclopses and harpies running around. Why not a... What are you exactly?"

"That won't work! You know what happened to the Minotaur when he went there! The prince stabbed him! With his own horn!"

"Then Plutanus." They turned to Lou Ellen.

"Okay, I'll explain. I know you love the sun, but it'd be easier to sneak around there, and I've heard about a castle near the border-"

"You mean the-"

"Yes. The ghost castle." Will shuddered. They'd all heard about the caslte. It had been named that for the ghostly wailing that came from it on occasion. And the skeletons that would patrol the place.

"No way."

Lou Ellen stared at him sadly. "We don't have a choice."

* * *

The storm hit so suddenly. It was probably the only sign that they'd crossed the border into the dark kingdom. Will couldn't imagine how cold Cecil felt without fur or a spell to block out the chill from the winds or the sharp stinging snowflakes that constantly blew into their faces.

Will had heard it was because the sun no longer shone over them that they would get so much snow, even in the summer months. Maybe that was why their prince had disappeared. Really, they could only go on rumors and speculation. Will's father had said that the young boy had fallen in love with a witch and fled the castle to be with her. His aunt had said the boy was troubled and that it was only a matter of time. Some even said it was because his father had named him heir, since his sister had died.

It didn't really matter in the end. The boy was gone, and likely not in the kingdom anymore. Will could understand wanting to leave such a barren land himself.

"There it is!" Lou Ellen shouted over the howling wind. Will almost missed the looming building had it not stood out so much against the pale snow.

"Thank the gods," Cecil cried, "I thought my tail was gonna freeze off."

Will charged ahead to open the door. It was so cold that it didn't want to open, but he forced it to. Cecil ran in, frost keeping his lashes glued together and obstructing his vision. Lou Ellen followed quickly behind before Will stepped in and shut the door. It was only a bit warmer inside.

"Uh, Lou? A little light?" A small ball of light appeared in her palm. She let it hover above them as they searched for a fireplace.

The hard part was finding firewood. In fact, it was easier to find jars of Greek fire, so they decided to let the green flame warm the room and give them light. It didn't help with the general atmosphere, but they decided to worry about that after some well needed rest.

Cecil was out right away, having been tired and cold, complaining about it the whole time they trekked though the storm. Lou Ellen took longer, always finding it difficult to sleep without her beloved stuffed frog. Will himself was surprised to find he was having such difficulties. What was really getting to him was the smells.

He'd only noticed it briefly with his friends, their unique scents being so familiar to him. Simple even. Lou Ellen smelled of drying herbs, most notably mint. Cecil smelled like dirt and rats, likely from the den he'd been living in for the past three years. But now there was something different. Earth, like Cecil, but with pomegranates and smoke. Why it stood out so much, he couldn't even guess, but it was all over the room.

It made him nervous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not planning on a lot of chapters. Should be done p quick.
> 
> It's weird, I know, but it helps me deal with my Will muse, which hasn't left me alone since last decade.


	2. A Cold Glare, a Spirit of Winter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I always say when I write a fanfic: I have no idea what I'm doing.

Will felt every hair on his body stand on end as his eyes popped open. Something wasn't right. He hopped to his hands and feet, glancing around the room, trying to find what had disrupted his slumber. Cecil was snoring softly as Lou Ellen cuddled her bag next to him. The green glow of the flames lit the room for the most part.

But there was also a purple glow coming from the doorway to the room. He whirled his head around and stared at the figure in the shadows.

His skin was ghostly pale, almost white, minus the blue streaks slipping through his hair line. His lips were turned down in a frown and his brows were furrowed over his cold, dark eyes. His hair, for the most part, was black as night with shockingly white streaks all mussed up like a colony of bats about to take flight. His clothes were simple, all dark and covering as much skin as possible. A black cloak trailed behind him and the only bit of color was the orange scarf with skulls and bats as a pattern. The scarf did nothing to dampen or enhance the bone chilling vibe that came from him.

As for the glow, he carried a candelabra with black flames and a sword strapped to his hip. Both gave off an eerie purple glow. Will didn't get the feeling he was there to invite them to breakfast.

Cecil mumbled something sleepily as he sat up. Will wanted to warn him, to tell him to play dead, but he didn't. It was just his luck that Lou Ellen awoke as well. She froze upon seeing the stranger and started mumbling an incantation under her breath.

"Silence."

His voice, though quiet, thundered through the chamber. Lou Ellen stopped mid casting.

"We're so sorry my du- Sir! We were just-" Cecil tried.

"I don't care." He shrank back under the stranger's harsh glare. "Get out."

Will wasn't sure what compelled him to stand up to the stranger, but he jumped to his feet and hissed at him. "Do you want us to die?!" He snarled. "Did you not notice the blizard out there?!"

The guy glanced at the window before returning his glare to Will. "I get that you don't know us, but there's no reaso to be-"

"A cold hearted monster?" He interrupted. "Yeah. I get that a lot. Now, are you gonna leave? Or will I have to throw you out?"

They were taken aback by how nonchalant he was. Lou Ellen got up and marched towards him, fists clenched tightly. He stared blankly as Cecil held her back. Cecil was the only one with a survival instinct apparently. Will kinda wanted to hit the guy too.

"So what's with the weird lion dude?" Cecil let her go. She promptly walked over and swung her fist. He didn't even try to stop her, taking the hit then staring at her with half-lidded eyes. "Was that all?"

She froze. "You..."

Will knew the look in her eyes. She'd only had it a few times before, but most recently it had been there every time she looked at him. There was something magical about the boy in front of him, be it that he himself was magic, or that he had magic done on him.

"Are you gonna finish that thought? Or do you want to keep gawking? Because frankly, I'm tired of-"

"Ice magic." He paused, then frowned again. Cecil blinked, unsure. Will, unlike his friends, started connecting things, no matter how wrong he possibly was. He saw the frost slowly forming by the stranger's feet, and took note that the room was slightly colder now.

He only had a few guesses. "Are you a snow spirit or something?"

"Sure, let's go with that," dark and broody rolled his eyes, "you guys do realize you're trespassing, right? And she assaulted me. In my own home. I could kill you for that." His hand was resting on the hilt of the blade as he moved to set the candelabra down. Wax was starting to drip onto the leather glove and it must have been getting uncomfortably hot.

"Uh..."

"Well-"

The loud thudding of the knocker on the front door echoed through the halls. Frosty (Will couldn't decide on a nickname yet) groaned and turned to the door. "I'll deal with you when I'm back." Instead of staying in the room like he probably expected, they followed him.

He probably wouldn't have noticed them if Will didn't discover a new problem. One of his claws snagged on the rug and he fell to the floor. His nose was sore and they'd definitely stopped to look at him. It took three tries for him to get his claw detached from the rug. His friends were quick to help him back on his feet (Paws?) while the stranger stared blankly. "Drink a potion or piss of a witch?"

"What?"

He rolled his eyes. "Well I'm guessing you weren't born with claws. And usually that species doesn't let their face hit the floor when they trip."

He knew the species. That was good! "Usually the aren't so humanoid though. Weird." Less good! The knocking came again and he glanced down the hall. "Whatever, look, follow me, don't. Tell me, ignore me, I don't care."

They watched him walk away, clearly annoyed at the whole ordeal. The most interesting option was to follow him, so of course they did. He moved so calmly and swiftly through the hall and all the way to the door.

He actually seemed mildly surprised that the door was giving resistance. Will couldn't help but feel like something was off about him. With Cecil's help, he got it open. A girl in a purple cloak stepped inside, pulling a horse and small cart in behind her.

"This storm is so much worse than the last one. I almost didn't make it." She said as the two got the door shut again. "You should be grateful Ni...co..." Her voice trailed as she scanned the other three people in the room. Will nervously moved closer to Lou Ellen.

"Nico?" The boy hummed. So Nico was his name. Will kind of liked the sound of that. Unfortunate that it belonged to _that guy._ "Who are these people?"

"I have no idea. That one punched me."

"Oh for the love of Proserpine..." She sighed and rubbed her forehead.


	3. A Royal Horse, a Royal Guest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just writting this because I want to, so I don't care if I give everything away for this. Like the inspiration.
> 
> Monster from the Frozen musical and a tumblr post about beauty and the beast.  
> Do with that information what you will.

"So, are we just gonna brush over the fact that she brought her horse inside?" Cecil broke the silence. The girl looked at him like he'd told her to get out. Nico glared at him like he was a bug that wandered too close to his food.

"Arion is allowed in the castle." She pouted. "Of course he is. So long as he doesn't break any of the furniture or-" she stopped him with a glare. He didn't seem to care, but he got the hint.

Lou Ellen's eues widened. "Wait, Arion as in the princess' horse?"

Will still hadn't made the connection. Why would an ordinary girl have Arion when he's the princess' horse? It didn't add up until

"He's my horse. I... I'm princess Hazel."

 _Oh that makes sense_ , he thought. "Wait- you're-" he stopped himself, because pieces were starting to fall in place. Nico glared at him as though he could tell. "Well, it's time for them to go."

"What?! No! Nico, if they go out there they'll die!"

"I don't care."

"But I do!" He softened a bit and mumbled to himself. Will was surprised that he actually heard him say "just let me die in peace, woman." His heart dropped into his stomach. This boy, who they barely knew, was dying. And he wanted to die alone. It was heartbreaking. What kind of person would want to die alone like that? It didn't make sense to him.

"Fine. Just until the storm passes."

"Thank you." Hazel smiled at him. He quirked his bow and her smile dropped. "I wasn't finished. If they're to stay here, they'll do chores around the house. You always complain that I never do them, and I don't care about it, so it only seems fair. They work, I feed them and let them stay."

To Will, it sounded fair, but it also wasn't the nicest thing he could do. Sure, they'd broken in and used some of his Greek fire, but he could still be considerate. They had no where else to go, no horses to carry them and he was fairly sure they'd run out of water. Hazel seemed to agree, but she said nothing. Instead, she sighed alnd looked around, an eyebrow reaching for her hairline.

"Why is it so dark in here anyway? The crystals were still lit the last time I was here..." Nico looked away. "The spell wore off, didn't it?"

"You know I'm not good at all that magic crap!" He growled. She just rolled her eyes and went to the clock near the stairs. It was a grandfather clock with a pendulum that would turn around depending on the time of day. Truely a magnificent piece. Or it would be, if it was working.

"I told you to let me try that spell. It'll run as long as I live if I do."

"You know why I refused." So did Will, now. He didn't want it to still be running after he died. He probably felt better without it reminding him of all the time that was passing.

Hazel was quiet as she messed with the clock. The pendulum started swinging and the hall was filled with light. There were crystals installed strategically on the walls and ceiling that glowed as magic ran through them. Lou Ellen gasped softly. Only royalty and nobles had gotten the privilege of such lighting. Will's own family was due to get them soon. They could be connected to a clock, or a life. Will had heard that Dionysus had had his set up to be on whenever it was dark out and he was awake. That, of course, meant that some times his house would be lit into the wee hours of the morning.

Things were different in Plutanus though. They didn't have sunlight to tell them when it was day or night. They must have installed such crystals in almost every home just so that people could keep track of the time of day.

Nico's appearance was more striking in the light. His skin was as pale as snow, his eyes as cold. The white in his hair looked more blue than plain white, like Will had assumed, and the patches of blue skin looked like frost. He seemed way more like a winter spirit then.

"Great. Now I can admire just how ugly this stupid place is." Hazel looked annoyed.

"You were the one that chose it."

"Whatever." He turned to Will and Cecil. "You two. Move these supplies into the kitchens. It'll be your first task."

* * *

Will decided he didn't like Nico. Sure, the guy was dying and deserved at least a little room to be bitter, but that didn't mean he could just be an ass. So far, that was all he had been. The only bit of kindness he showed them was declaring he would make dinner rather than them.

Cecil assumed he either thought they didn't know how to cook (which he wouldn't be too far off with) or he thought they'd try to poison him. Certainly a possibility considering how he treated everyone. They expressed as much the moment he left the room.

Hazel was visibly uncomfortable with the topic. Then she spoke softly, "he wasn't always like this... He's just been going through a lot with discovering his powers and what happened to Bianca-"

"Still doesn't give him a right to be so rude!"

"Wait, did you say-"

"I mean, he probably wouldn't even care if we hung ourselves from his chandelier with how he's been treating us." Lou Ellen glared at Cecil for the interruption. Hazel shifted in her seat. "You'll have to talk to him about that... I don't think he'd appreciate me telling you..."

Cecil scoffed, "that dude clearly doesn't appreciate anything. I mean, he didn't even thank us for the work we did!"

They went silent as Nico reentered. He said nothing as he gave everyone a plate of food before he sat down. Will really wanted to have a private conversation with him, but he got the feeling that "frosty" wouldn't care for that.

"So are you cursed?" Hazel asked him. His tail twitched behind himself.

"How did you-"

"Oh, I've been training." She blushed slightly. "Under lady Hecate."

Lou Ellen practically fainted. "Oh... Well... Yeah. My dad was being dumb and got me cursed. No big deal." He barely heard Nico mumbling to himself about curses. He ignored him in favor of listening to Lou Ellen and Hazel discuss curses and ways to break them. Cecil though, he had other priorities.

"Hey, why is there a layer of frost on everyone's plates?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's 5am. I shouldn't be writing right now, yet here I am. Why? I don't know. I do know that it's hard to type on your phone when you're laying on your side tho.
> 
> Also, apparently I'm sick so yay.... Did I seriously start this chapter 4 days ago?


	4. A Prince and His Curse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pacing is weird, I know, but I wanted to start getting into the romance aspect and I'm impatient.

Will was starting to doubt the storm would ever let up as he came across the inner courtyard. He'd ignored it every other time he'd passed, but this day was particularly rough. Not only were they still stuck there with the cold hearted beast Hazel called Nico, but they'd just figured out that the only way to break his curse was romantic love.

It sucked since, once again, they were stuck there. Unless he made Hazel fall for him or one of his friends, he probably wouldn't be turning back any time soon. He was so frustrated.

He stomped out into the courtyard and started throwing snowballs at the wall. Watching them explode into powder as they made contact with the wall made him feel slightly better, but only slightly. He only paused when he heard the crunching of snow approach him. He expected to see Hazel or Lou Ellen as he turned.

Instead Nico was staring at the wall that had just been assaulted with snow. "What'd the wall do to you?"

Will huffed and looked away, packing more snow into another ball. He threw it at the wall like all the others and watched it explode. "That doesn't really answer my question, but okay."

He paused to watch Nico make a snowball of his own to throw at the wall. His had a thin layer of ice around it making for a smaller, but louder, explosion of powder. He hummed softly then glanced at Will. It was silent for a long moment.

"Why are you out here?"

Nico shrugged. "Same as you I guess." He picked at the ice forming on his gloves. "Frustration with a curse."

"You're cursed?" Will asked, but he already knew. He'd seen Nico's bare feet as Hazel tried to warm him up. He'd seen his blue, slightly transparent fingers. Even now he could see that at least one of his ears was transparent.

"I thought it was pretty obvious." Nico shrugged, making a new snowball. "It's why I'm here instead of... At home... I'd rather die in peace than have everyone trying to force me to break it."

He didn't want to seem rude but... As the snowball hit the wall, he felt compelled to ask. "What exactly is your curse?"

"Frozen heart."

Will had only heard about the curse. Lou Ellen had mentioned that it was hard to cast and easy to break most of the time. But, according to her, all it ever did was freeze a person from the inside out. She'd even said that there hadn't been a case in years.

Nico must have known what he was thinking. "It was a very specific curse. Frozen heart is just the type, I guess. See... I act so cold and uncaring because I've lost the capacity to care about most things. I...don't even care that I'm dying. But my sister... She wants me to do that stupid selfless act so bad, so that I can live, but I'm not sure she's realized that... If I preform a selfless act purely because I want to break the curse, then it won't be a selfless act anymore.

"And... I just don't care enough about anything to be able to actually do it." He'd been making another snowball as he spoke, throwing it at the wall as he finished.

"A selfless act? But it's usually an act of true love?" He rolled his eyes at the blonde cat-man. "Right... Just a similar curse..." He turned his attention back to the wall. There was something else he said that was bugging him.

"You mentioned a sister... Did... Did you mean Hazel?" He didn't answer. "Wait- you- your the prince? Is this why you ran away?"

Nico didn't have to answer. The way he turned to the doors said it all. "We should head inside."

"Just one more question..." Nico sighed and looked at him. "How long do you have? I- I mean- how much of you is already frozen?"

Nico glanced back at Will. Will's eyes widened as he realized another lock of his hair turned white as they'd spoken. "Too much. I'll be dead before winter."

* * *

It felt like a stone sitting in his gut. Watching Nico continue on without a care, knowing that they could very well wake up one day and he'd be nothing more than an ice sculpture. Nico handled it a lot better than Will. While he was walking along like nothing was wrong, Will was dealing with a storm inside himself.

Nico was a prince. A prince to a cursed kingdom. A cursed prince. With a cursed house guest. It was all so overwhelming. He almost expected someone to pop out and scream that they were in a play or something. Alas, no one was hiding behind the curtains whenever he checked.

Cecil noticed his odd behaviour right away.

"You okay man?" He asked with just about as much concern as Will usually had when he noticed his friends were down. Will was hesitant to answer. He was a terrible liar, but he didn't want to just tell his friends about Nico's predicament.

"I'm just frustrated, I guess. I mean, how in Pluto's name am I supposed to get someone to fall in love with me? Or fall in love with someone?" He gestured at the floor. "I mean, Hazel is sweet, but she's a princess. Plus, I'm pretty sure she already likes someone. And you and Lou are like siblings to me so, gross. And Nico is..." What was he going to say? Cursed? _A prince? Heir to the throne? Way out of his league?_ That last one was debatable. But none of the kingdoms would really approve of a relationship. Maybe that was what scared him the most. The thought that the people would disapprove of a prince and a nobel- a noble _boy_ -

"An ass? A big jerk? A winter spirit waiting to destroy the world? Yeah. I get that." Cecil misread his pause. "Maybe we can convince him to kidnap someone for you. They'll blame him and you can rescue them."

"Wh- Cecil!" He hit his friend's arm. Probably a little harder than necessary but the message got through. Cecil started laughing. Pretty soon, both were rolling on the floor when-

"What have we here?" Cecil said as he pulled a box out from behind a curtain. Will started to tell him to put it back when he spied what was inside. He hadn't moved so fast in a long time. He had to be sure his eyes weren't deceiving him.

Sure enough, in gold lettering, _Mythomagic: the trials of Heracles._ It was his favorite volume. By the looks of it, the prince had every volume of the series. It was one of the best discoveries they'd made the entire time they'd been at the castle.

He slowly became aware that Cecil was staring at him. Bringing the book down and quirking his brow, he turned his attention back to Cecil. "What?"

"Bro, your eyes got huge when you saw that book." Will was pretty sure that his fur was the only reason Cecil didn't know he was blushing. "That was freaky cute and I think I have to punch you for it."

"If you punch me, I'll have to retaliate."

Cecil nodded and turned his attention back to the books. "Fair."

"What are you two doing?"

Cecil had never moved faster to get out of a place. Will, however, frozen in place, still holding the book. Nico's dark eyes trailed after Cecil before turning to Will. He walked over and took one of the books out of the box. "Mythomagic... I haven't seen these in a long time." He smiled fondly. "I used to read them over and over."

Will beamed and held up the one in his hands. "This one's my favorite." Nico looked at it and nodded.

"Yeah, that one's pretty good. Mine's Shadows and Flowers." He said as he started digging through the box. The aforementioned book was clearly a well loved book, a marker still sticking out where he hadn't finished it last time. After another moment, he took the book from Will and picked up the box. "Help me put these in the library."

Not a question, but not quite an order. Will liked that. He got up and followed Nico through the halls. He'd only seen the library a couple times. He hoped this meant Nivo would be fine with him visiting it more often.

As the books were being shelved, he thought to ask, "hey, why were these out in that hall anyway?" He glanced over his shoulder at Nico. The prince had paused, book in hand, eyes unfocused as he stared dead ahead. Will took a tentative step closer.

"I threw them there..." Nico mumbled. "After my sister died..."

"Oh..." He didn't really know what to say. 'Sorry' just didn't cut it. He knew from personal experience that it felt empty when people did that.

Nico shook his head and handed him the book to put away. "I'm over it. She died, and I'll be dead soon anyway. No point letting it hold me down anymore."

Will would never get used to that. Perhaps he wasn't meant to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, pacing is weird, but I kinda want to get to a couple boys being soft and cute together.
> 
> Also, should I throw a wild Percy in? Like, for a chapter or something.  
> Just an idea that popped into my head at 5am.


	5. A Dangerous Prince, a Budding Romance?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I decided to add Percy.  
> Hazel told him where Nico was hidding. Though it says that in the chapter. Hopefully.
> 
> I'm writting this before I write the chapter.

Nico was surprisingly easier to get to know after Will found out about his curse. Before, he'd just seemed too cold and inhuman. Now Will could see where it was the curse's influence and where it was Nico. The real Nico.

Mostly, it was in the way that he showed his love for his family. He may not care that much about what could happen to them, but he certainly recognised that they made him happy. He didn't get rid of things they gave him, even though he didn't care if they were broken or went missing.

Another great example was his cooking. You'd think it was just something he did to survive, but Will was quickly learning that there was more to it.

Nico was singing to himself as he worked. Will didn't know the song itself, but he knew it was in another language. He'd paused in his cleaning just to listen. It wasn't that Nico was really trying, but the little tune was pleasant. Will would have joined him if he knew the words, and if he could, you know. Sing. Instead, he listened. His ears perked up, his tail swaying in time. He was really getting used to his new body.

Nico paused. "I thought you were cleaning?"

"Oh! Sorry, yeah." Will turned back to what he was doing. "Am I too distracting?" He could hear the smirk in Nico's voice. Once again he was thanking his fur for hiding his blush. That didn't hide the rest of his body language though.

Nico started laughing. He could feel his ears drooping slightly as his shoulders raises and his tail twitched. "Well that's not what I was expecting."

It was quiet for a moment before Will glanced at him again. The blue marks on his face spread slightly along his jaw. Without thinking, he reached out and touched the mark. Nico's head snapped to look at him and he took several steps away. "Sorry! Sorry!" Will raised his hands. "I was just... Can you feel when it spreads?"

"Kind of..." Nico said after a moment of hesitation.

"What does it feel like?"

Nico glanced at his hands, the tip of his gloves were starting to turn blue. He moved to take them off as he spoke. "Well, the skin around it is really cold, but the infected parts themselves are numb. It's like... They aren't even there anymore." He flexed his hand, glancing through his fingers at the pots in front of him. "Warmth helps slow it down, but not enough. It's yet to bring any of it back."

Will nodded along. "And the gloves?" Nico considered the question. He shrugged. That seemed to be it. "I'm sorry for touching you."

"Your claws are sharp."

"I- what do you expect? They're claws! If I had a way to clip them or just keep them dull I'd probably do it. It's not like I can just bite them like I usually do." _Did I say that out loud?_

Nico let out a soft laugh and shook his head. "Talk to Hazel. She may be able to help with that." He stirred the pot. Then he took a spoonful and offered it to Will to taste. Will blinked at him. "I already know how it tastes. I just want your opinion."

"Oh, no. I'm good." Nico shrugged and tried it. "I'll go see Hazel about my... Um... Yeah." He fled.

 _What is wrong with you Solace?_ He hit his head a few times lightly. His feelings were getting so confusing and the butterflies in his stomach were beyond annoying. There was no controlling it though, and that was something he knew all too well. The laaast time he had tried lead to a failed courtship and hurt feelings. Not exactly his brightest moment.

With a sigh, he turned his attention outside as he passed a window. It wasn't like he could actually see anything when he looked out, but sometimes he could imagine he was back home, escaping one of his father's parties.

_Snow sounds fun._

The thought was enough to get him walking in the direction of the entrance. He'd just step out for a few minutes, play in the snow, then run back in like nothing had happened. Sure his fur would get all wet, but it wasn't like they'd ask, right? If they did he could just say he needed stress relief.

He did not end up going outside. The moment he'd reached the entrance hall, the door was being shoved open. His pace slowed as the door opened wider to let someone slip inside. They wore a blue travel-cloak over their clothes. Snow stuck to the fur trim of their hood as they pushed the door closed behind them. Their boots squeaked against the tile and they let out a deep sigh.

Will took a hesitant step towards them and his claws clicked on the floor. He really needed to get them trimmed. The person whirled around, drawing a sword from within their cloak. He couldn't believe his eyes.

Dark hair, sea green eyes, chiseled jawline. Prince Percy himself had come to the castle. And he was pointing Riptide right at Will.

He only had time to let out a pathetic squeak as Percy lunged for him. He'd barely been grazed by the sword as he ducked around him. The cut burned with pain and he clutched his arm to his chest. Blood was matting up his fur and his heart started racing. "H- hey! Th- that was kind of rude! Do you greet everyone like-" he yelped and dodged another attack.

"Rude?! You're the one that's invaded my friend's home!" Percy raged at him. The sheer amount of anger and hut in his voice probably would have made Will pause if he wasn't about to be killed.

Percy swung at him again, cutting his leg. He yowled in pain and fell back. He was certain he was finished when a small object flew through the air and struck the prince in the middle of his forehead. "Ow!" He yelped as he stumbled back. Riptide flew out of his hand and started floating just out of his reach, a purple aura around it. "What the-"

"You take one more step near my friend and I'll send another pebble up your nose."

"Or I'll turn you into a pig. Prince or not."

"Wait prin-"

"Percy, what the hell?" They turned to look at Nico. Percy's shoulders slumped and he took a shaky breath as tears welled up in his eyes. He looked so incredibly relieved that Will almost relaxed himself. The pain and fear kind of prevented that. "You got blood all over my floor. You know how hard that stuff is to clean up? And you hurt Will. Now he's not gonna be able to get anything done."

"Gee, thanks for being _so_ concerned for my wellbeing." Will was ignored.

"You're alive." Percy gave Nico a teary smile. Said prince looked at himself, patting his chest. "Yes, it would appear that I am."

Percy went to give Nico a hug as Lou Ellen moved to Will's side and started treating his wounds. He hissed softly as she began applying pressure to the cut on his leg. Black spots swirled around the edge of his vision. "Hey, stop trying to hug Jack Frost over there and come help me."

"Huh? Oh. Sorry." A pause. "Ah, shit. He's not a monster, is he? Because most monsters don't bleed red."

"Oh, my blood's still red? That's fantastic." Will slurred, looking at the wounds. He was starting to feel a bit woozy. He stared at his leg for a long moment as Lou Ellen tried to figure out what to do. "I m bleeding a lot." He mumbled. She gave him her infamous _thanks-captain-obvious_ side-eye and went back to what she was doing.

"Geeze, sorry man." Percy said as he knelt down to get a good look. "That's probably gonna need stitches..." He started searching through his pack.

"Did you know it only takes a pound of pressure to cut skin? I wonder how much it takes with fur in the way." Will murmured to himself. Percy paused to look at him. Cecil shook his head as he moved closer to his friend. "He gets like that when he's freaking out."

Will watched them treat his wounds as he muttered little facts to Cecil. He knew that it was all gibberish to his friend, but it helped keep him calm and in the moment.

"Why did you even come here?" Nico asked.

"I wanted to see my friend."

"But how did you know to come here?" Percy glanced sheepishly at the younger prince. "Hazel told me."

"Of course she did."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ended the chapter because I'm tired and wanted to move on.


End file.
